


Reel Me In

by cosima_geekmonkey_niehaus



Category: Orphan Black (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-23
Updated: 2014-07-23
Packaged: 2018-02-10 02:15:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2007159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cosima_geekmonkey_niehaus/pseuds/cosima_geekmonkey_niehaus
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sarah meets an interesting woman in a bar, sexual tension ensues.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reel Me In

Sarah walked down the street, lost in thought, as a light rain began to fall; the sky had been dark all day, and she was unsure of the time, but knew it must be after eight because the businessmen and women still dressed in their suits were heading out of the bars and restaurants, home to their families. She felt out of place amongst all these put-together people, as a member of the underworld, and she pulled her hood up to shield herself from their stares. The streets began to fill up with people hailing taxis, or taking their final drags on their cigarettes before heading to their cars. Uncomfortable by all the faces surrounding her – judging her - Sarah turned into the nearest doorway, entering a cozy bar she had never been in before.

After shaking the rain off of her, Sarah looked around, taking in the atmosphere of the bar. It was pretty dark, and there was soft rock playing quietly - not exactly her scene, but it would do for one drink. She walked over to the bar, sat down, and ordered a bourbon from the bartender; he was slightly overweight, about forty, with a tangled beard, and he winked at her after she ordered, pouring her a double even though she didn’t ask for one. His vibe was nauseating, and to avoid having to endure painful small talk with him, Sarah got up to look for a seat as far from the bar as possible.

The bar had seemed pretty empty when she walked in, but upon searching for a new seat, Sarah realized that all of the tables were occupied, mostly by singles who seemed to be drowning their sorrows. Unwilling to talk to anyone, Sarah finally took up a seat at a table with another woman about her age, who was sitting with a glass of wine, her nose in a book. The woman didn’t even look up when Sarah sat down, which made her very happy with her choice, and she began silently sipping her drink.

Sarah was unsure of how long she sat there, slowly drinking and staring at the back of the woman’s book, playing with her glass, fidgeting with the frayed ends of her sweatshirt. It seemed like some sort of science book because there were weird symbols on the front that brought back memories of high school biology. She couldn’t see the woman’s face because she was so engrossed in her reading, but Sarah could see that she had dark brown dreadlocks pulled back into a ponytail. There were probably a dozen bracelets on the woman’s wrist, and quite a few rings, and Sarah could just make out a tattoo of a shell on her forearm beneath the bangles. Sarah had been ready to write this woman off as a complete square, but the tattoo and the dreads intrigued her.

Sarah was contemplating a second drink, when suddenly the woman reached out and knocked over her wine glass, causing Sarah to jump up and the woman to throw her book aside in panic.

"Oh man, I’m so sorry!" the woman said, slightly horrified, "I’m like the biggest klutz ever, this is totally embarrassing!"

Sarah looked up, slightly irritated, but immediately forgot her agitation when she saw the woman’s face. It was not the face she had expected. Yes, the woman had glasses, but she also had thick eyeliner surrounding her soft, friendly eyes; her lips were full and stained slightly red, pulled up into an adorable sheepish half-smile; her glasses had slipped halfway down her nose, and Sarah took note of the silver nose ring. This woman was not at all what she expected to see - she was gorgeous and Sarah was left speechless.

The woman bit her lip nervously, looking at Sarah expectantly, and Sarah realized she had been blatantly staring. She shook her head to bring herself back to the present.

"It’s fine, yeah." Sarah said, waving her hand to brush off the accident.

Sarah let the corner of her mouth turn up, and the woman broke out into a wide, toothy grin.

"I’m Cosima, by the way," she said, holding out her hand to Sarah.

"Sarah," she replied, offering up her hand. Cosima grasped Sarah’s hand firmly, her skin warm and soft, the handshake assertive yet friendly. Sarah pulled away quickly, returned to her seat, and began busying herself with wiping up the table.

Cosima went over to the bar and came back a few minutes later with a new glass of wine and another bourbon for Sarah. Sarah took the drink with a slight smile, and avoided making eye contact as Cosima sat down.

"So Sarah," Cosima said, leaning her elbows on the table and placing her chin in her hands, "what brings you here tonight?"

Sarah squinted, trying to figure out the meaning behind this question. She was probably just trying to be nice; after all, she did just come very close to dowsing Sarah with wine. She thumbed the rim of her glass as she thought about an answer.

"I just wanted to, you know, get off the street, get out of the rain, yeah?" Sarah said, taking a drink as she eyed Cosima suspiciously. Cosima, however, looked at her warmly, the smile still on her face.

"Totally," Cosima nodded, her eyes widening. “Rough day?”

Sarah continued to scrutinize Cosima with her stare. “I don’t come to this side of town often. Too many bloody squares.”

“So you’re just passing through? That’s cool,” Cosima offered, seeming genuinely interested in Sarah’s story,.

The interest slightly annoyed Sarah, but she took another sip of her drink and nodded.

They sat in silence, slowly sipping their drinks. After a few minutes, Sarah caught herself staring into Cosima’s eyes again, so she quickly looked away, her eyes falling on Cosima’s book.

"So, are you a scientist or something?" Sarah asked.

"Yeah," Cosima’s face brightened, filling with excitement. "Well, a Ph.D. student in evolutionary developmental biology, at the university. I study epigentic effects of clone cells."

Sarah wasn’t sure exactly what Cosima studied, her face plastered with confusion, but she was momentarily mesmerized by the way she moved her hands while talking, as if she were reaching out and grabbing the words out of the air. Sarah had a feeling she could listen to Cosima talk about anything, and she swallowed another mouthful of bourbon.

"Cool," Sarah said, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. She was trying her best to maintain her tough exterior, but she was unsure of how to take control of the conversation, because Cosima was unlike anyone she had ever met before. She was smart, and gave off kind of a nerdy vibe, but she also had a tattoo and a nose ring, not to mention her dreads, and Sarah couldn’t help but find this juxtaposition intriguing and a little sexy.

Despite the sarcasm, Cosima continued looking at Sarah with the same warmth in her eyes, the same adorable grin on her face. Cosima took a long sip of her wine, maintaining eye contact, putting Sarah slightly on edge. She frowned slightly.

"Why did you bring a book to a bar, anyway? Trying to keep the freaks away?" Sarah scoffed and stared down Cosima, expecting her to be slightly offended. Cosima’s smile did fade into more of a smirk, but her eyes remained soft and warm.

"I was enjoying my book, but I needed a change of scenery," she said, tilting her head, as if she were asking Sarah to challenge her. Sarah pursed her lips, but said nothing, so Cosima continued. "I come in here a lot, I live just around the corner, and I spend so much time on campus in the lab or in my apartment studying that I need a place to go to relax, like away from my work, so I come here. It’s usually quiet and I rarely ever get approached, unlike tonight." There was a twinkle in Cosima’s eye when she said that, and Sarah smiled slightly before protesting.

"Hey I didn’t approach you," Sarah said with her hands up in defense, leaning forward with some aggression. "I was quietly having a drink when your klutzy ass almost covered me in wine."

"Yes, but you sat down here in the first place," Cosima said without missing a beat, a playful gleam in her eye. "You could’ve sat anywhere else in the bar, but you chose to come over to my table." Cosima smiled wide again, pressing her tongue up to her teeth.

"Don’t flatter yourself," Sarah replied. "You seemed like the least likely to talk to me." They locked eyes for a moment and then Sarah smiled. "Boy was I wrong!"

They both broke out in laughter; Sarah ran her hand through her hair and Cosima bent over close to the table giggling. Cosima reached out to steady herself with the table just as Sarah brought her hand back down, accidentally placing her hand on top of Sarah’s. They were still for a moment, staring at their hands, before Cosima pulled her hand away, dragging her fingers along the back of Sarah’s hand. Sarah couldn’t help but grin coyly back at Cosima, and Cosima grinned back knowingly.

Sarah reached out and downed the rest of her drink, aware of the mischievous look on Cosima’s face. “I’ll be right back,” Sarah said, and she promptly got up and went into the bathroom.

Once inside the bathroom, Sarah stood in front of the mirror, unsure of what she was actually doing in there. Normally Sarah was always in charge of her interactions with other people, but Cosima was a whole new breed for her - the confidence, the openness was slightly unnerving, but extremely enticing.

She stood there for a few minutes, contemplating the situation, before finally running her hand through her hair and turning to go. There was something about Cosima that Sarah did not want to let go, that she wanted to explore. When she got back to the table, Cosima had finished her wine and was paying the tab for them both. Sarah stood next to the table, trying to figure out Cosima’s next move.

"Could’ve paid for my own drinks," Sarah said, leaning over Cosima as she fiddled with her purse.

"Well, now you can owe me one," Cosima said playfully, leaning into Sarah and putting her chin on her shoulder.

"Oh yeah," Sarah said, raising her eyebrows. "And when will I be returning the favor?" She leaned back, placing her hand on her hip.

Cosima got up from the table, put her coat on, and began fastening the buttons. When she was done, she leaned in and whispered into Sarah’s ear, “how about you come to my place and we can figure something out.”

With that, Cosima brushed past Sarah, letting her hand linger on Sarah’s waist while looking Sarah straight in the eye, and walked out of the bar. Sarah turned and stared after her, unsure of what exactly had happened, surprised by Cosima’s boldness. She looked at the table, then back at the door Cosima had just disappeared through.

"Shite," Sarah said under her breath before she broke out in a wide smile, and then she followed Cosima out the door.


End file.
